- October 14, 2026
Ehimen Ajede has been known as He-Man since he was 12 years old. The nickname has nothing to do with feats of strength. But the Flagler Palm Coast running back has been doing a lot of heavy lifting for the Bulldogs this season.
Ajede’s name is Nigerian. It is pronounced, “Eh-he-may Eh-jeh-day,” he said.
“He-Man” was given to him when he played for the Flagler Titans youth football organization. His said his coach, Bob Starr, gave him the moniker.
“He didn't know how to pronounce it,” Ajede said. “He was like, ‘We do not know how to say his first name. We have to come up with something,’ And that’s where He-Man came from.”
Ajede has been known as He-Man ever since. He sometimes uses the nickname when referring to himself in conversation as in, “He-Man was actually supposed to play for Matanzas,” or “I want to [be an] anesthesiologist. But He-man could possibly be a firefighter.”
Whatever he makes up his mind to do, says his head football coach, Patrick Turner, he’ll be successful doing it.
“I think he’ll get a chance to play college football, but if he decides to do something else he’ll be good at that,” Turner said.
This season, the senior has been the Bulldogs’ offensive motor on a team that has produced a 4-0 record heading into a Thursday, Sept. 24 game at Tocoi Creek (0-5), a district opponent. Ajede's numbers have been eye-popping: 613 yards rushing, 9.0 yards per carry and nine touchdowns in four games.
“He understands he needs to carry the team,” Turner said. “He realizes everybody behind him, running back-wise, is young or also plays another position. He’s doing a tremendous job. He’s doing what I knew he’s capable of, and I don’t think he’s done yet. He might get 1,500 to 2,000 yards and 20 to 25 touchdowns when it’s all said and done.”
Another impressive number is Ajede’s GPA: 3.78. He’s accomplished that with a daily schedule that would overwhelm most people not named He-Man.
You just have to stay grounded. If you continue working hard, pushing yourself, the opportunity is going to present itself. You just got to take it.
— EHIMEN “HE-MAN’ AJEDE
He begins his day early in the morning. Up until Sept. 11, the Bulldogs held early-morning practice before school. Now his day begins with Fire Leadership Academy during first and second periods, followed by English, statistics and history. After the regular school day he has football practice. Then from 6-9 p.m. he attends EMT class at Flagler Technical College on the FPC campus.
When he gets his EMT certification and passes his firefighter exams this summer he’ll be qualified to be a full-time EMT/firefighter. That’s his backup plan. He’s looking to major in pre-med in college, go to medical school and eventually become an anesthesiologist. But as he says, He-Man could possibly be a firefighter.
“My mom was like, ‘you could be the first doctor in the family.’ And for me, I’d get to be the first firefighter in my family,” Ajede said. “So those are the two branches of the path I'm walking down, and I’ll see where God takes me.”
Either way, he wants to serve others. It’s in his DNA. He dad, who is from Nigeria, and his mom, who is from Bunnell, met at Calvary Palm Coast Church, where they are all still members.
“He’s a very spiritual guy,” FPC running backs coach Charlie Washington said of Ajede. “He’s one of those persons that’s definitely selfless.”
Ajede has embraced his leadership role on the football team, his coaches say.
“He’s just an unbelievable human being, such a nice and genuine person,” Turner said. “He’s always encouraging, always positive, and those attributes carry onto the football field. He has an unbelievable work ethic.”
Ajede loves the fire academy. But he joined it just so he could enroll at FPC. The year he was entering high school, his R-section neighborhood in Palm Coast was re-zoned for Matanzas High.
“My mom was like, ‘you may have to go to Matanzas,’ and I was like, ‘oh goodness,’ because everyone's expecting me to come here. They know me,” Ajede said. “And so, the fire academy people came to (Buddy Taylor Middle School) and they said you can still go to FPC if you enroll in a program. And I’m like, what’s a program? And so, I check it out. And at first, I was a little skeptical. But I really like it. Lt. (Thomas) Cope is a great teacher, and I like the family, the camaraderie. They want to see me succeed. I want to see them succeed. We’re a group of people trying to help others.”
As a freshman in 2023, Ajede seemed to be running back Marcus Mitchell’s heir apparent. Ajede rushed for 356 yards and a touchdown as Mitchell’s backup.
A year later, as Mitchell closed out his high school career as the Bulldogs’ all-time leading rusher, Ajede was sidelined. He suffered a severe left ankle sprain in the spring of 2024. He returned for the third game of the season on Sept. 13 and severely sprained his right ankle on a 60-yard run. His sophomore season ended with two carries for 65 yards.
“I didn't think I really wanted to play football after that,” he said. “It was a tough recovery. I had to learn how to run like I used to. It was a tough process, but I thank God for these coaches and the guys believing in me.”
Sharing the running back spot with Darwin “DJ” Harris last season, Ajede ran for 430 yards and seven touchdowns. Harris transferred to Matanzas, and now, as a senior, Ajede is the workhorse in the backfield.
“Now that he's the primary running back, he's able to showcase his ability a lot more,” Washington said. “His running style is very explosive. It may take him one or two carries to get in the groove. He can go from a 2-yard gain to a 15-yard gain to a 30- to 40-yard, touchdown run. Once he gets into determination mode, you’re going to need multiple people to bring him down.”
Florida Atlantic University and Florida A&M have shown interest. “Those are my two big shots, my two headers,” Ajede said.
Ajede said he’s improved in so many areas, such as being patient in hitting the hole, learning how to take a tackle and being a vocal leader on the field.
“When DJ left he knew he would have to step up and carry the team, and he’s done that,” Turner said.
“You just have to stay grounded,” Ajede said. “If you continue working hard, pushing yourself, the opportunity is going to present itself. You just got to take it, and that's what we're going to do this year as Bulldogs.”
